Top 20 Most Common Bird in Los Alamos

Frequent in urban environments and human-created habitats such as parks and backyards, the little house Finch is known for its loud but pleasant, cheerful singing. It feeds on the ground, mostly on seeds, berries, and other plant material. This bird is highly sociable and very adaptable. It often visits feeders.

The spotted Towhee is a large sparrow found in sunny, open forests and recognizable by its distinctive two-footed hop. A ground dweller, it scratches the ground in search of food. Regarded as an extremely vocal bird, its song varies according to geographical location. During the breeding season, the male spends more than 70% of its mornings singing, trying to attract the female.

The common Raven is one of the most ubiquitous species of birds and is revered for its high intelligence. These birds prefer open habitats, but can be found in nearly all environmental conditions besides rainforests. As a social species, some subspecies of common Raven have been known to have 15 to 33 different categories of calls!

Measurements: Length: 3.5-4.3 in (9-11 cm) Weight: 0.3-0.4 oz (9-11 g) Wingspan: 19.7 cm (7.75 in) It ranges from southern British Columbia south through various discontinuous parts of the western U.S. (northwest U.S., Sierra Nevada range, southern Rockies, etc.), to central Mexico. It is usually found in pines (especially ponderosa pines), Douglas-firs, and other conifers. Pygmy nuthatches clamber acrobatically in the foliage of these trees, feeding on insects and seeds; less often they creep along limbs or the trunk like bigger nuthatches. Pygmy nuthatches nest in cavities in dead stubs of conifers, lining the bottom of the cavity with pine-cone scales, plant down, and other soft plant and animal materials. They may fill cracks or crevices around the entrance with fur; the function of this behavior is unknown. The female lays 4–9 eggs, which are white with fine reddish-brown spotting. She does most of the incubation, which lasts about 16 days. The young leave the nest about 22 days after hatching. This species is highly gregarious. A nesting pair may have other birds as helpers. Outside the breeding season, this bird wanders in noisy flocks. It also roosts communally; over 100 birds have been seen huddled in a single tree cavity. All plumages are similar, with a warm gray cap, blue-gray upper-parts, and whitish underparts. The only feature not seen in the photograph is a whitish spot on the nape, particularly in worn plumage (summer). Vocalizations are highly varied chirps, peeps, and chattering. This species is very similar to the brown-headed nuthatch of the southeastern U.S. Their ranges have no overlap. The pygmy nuthatch features prominently in the climax of the 2000 film Charlie's Angels, in which Cameron Diaz's character, Natalie, discovers the location of the villains' fortress by identifying the call of the pygmy nuthatch, which she says only live in Carmel, California—though the bird shown is not a pygmy nuthatch, which in any case is found in a much wider range. (The Hollywood impostor is a Venezuelan troupial, Icterus icterus.)

The white-breasted Nuthatch is the largest nuthatch in North America, but it's still a relatively small bird. It's a monogamous species and the pair usually nests in tree cavities. The white-breasted Nuthatch prefers old deciduous woodlands. When in search of food, it creeps along the trees up and down, relying on its strong legs, rather than using a tail for additional support like woodpeckers do.

The mountain Chickadee is a flocking bird found in mountainous regions with dense evergreen coverage. These birds have an interesting feeding behavior where they hang upside-down on branches to find seeds and insects. They can survive on just ten calories per day so they often store excess seeds for later. They have a very distinct "chick-a-dee" call which gives them their name.

The american Crow is a big black bird that can be found in forests, fields, river groves, and among human habitations. Interestingly, it is known to stand atop ant hills and allow ants to climb onto its feathers; this apparently discharges their formic acid and makes them more palatable for the crow to eat. Sadly, american Crow numbers have been substantially affected by the West Nile virus in North America. Infected birds die from West Nile in less than a week.

One of the most common birds of North America, the dark-eyed Junco lives in flocks in open forests, but it's very common in urban areas. This a highly variable species consists of at least five subspecies. This ground bird is often seen during winter, so it's sometimes called the "Snowbird," although it shares the nickname with the Snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis).

It is 19 to 25 cm (7.5 to 9.8 in) long, and has a noticeably long tail, at 8.2 to 11 cm (3.2 to 4.3 in). This species weighs from 36.5 to 67 g (1.29 to 2.36 oz), though on average weigh only around 45 g (1.6 oz). Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 8.2 to 10.1 cm (3.2 to 4.0 in), the bill is 1.4 to 1.7 cm (0.55 to 0.67 in) and the tarsus is 2.3 to 2.7 cm (0.91 to 1.06 in). It is earthy brown in colour, with somewhat lighter underparts and a somewhat darker head with a rufous cap (except that birds in central Mexico have the cap the same color as the back); there is also a slightly reddish area beneath the tail. There is little sexual dimorphism.

In the search of its favorite food—ants—the northern Flicker often forages leaf litter and tree bark, which makes it the only ground forager in the woodpecker group. It's a migratory species, which is quite a rare behavior for woodpeckers, as well. The northern Flicker has an eastern (yellow-shafted) and a western (red-shafted) form. It lays a large number of eggs - the known record is 71 eggs in 73 days.

The adult acorn woodpecker has a brownish-black head, back, wings and tail, white forehead, throat, belly and rump. The eyes are white. There is a small part on the small of their backs where there are some green feathers. The adult male has a red cap starting at the forehead, whereas females have a black area between the forehead and the cap. The white neck, throat, and forehead patches are distinctive identifiers. When flying, they take a few flaps of their wings and drop a foot or so. White circles on their wings are visible when in flight. Acorn woodpeckers have a call that sounds almost like they are laughing. Measurements: Length: 7.5-9.1 in (19-23 cm) Weight: 2.3-3.2 oz (65-90 g) Wingspan: 13.8-16.9 in (35-43 cm)

The american Robin is the most common, and largest, thrush in North America. It's a bird of striking colors, including its vibrant, red-breasted plumage and pale blue eggs. It likes to feed on summer fruit and berries, but worms play an important role in its diet as well. This songbird is a state bird of Connecticut, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Its cheery song is considered one of the first signs of spring.

The pine Siskin is a very small finch that moves unpredictably between habitats from year to year. It can be abundant in an area one year but totally absent the next. This irregular movement is related to food sources - particularly the yields of hemlock, pine, and birch seeds and buds. This songbird is a sociable species that often joins flocks of goldfinches.

Though tiny, the broad-tailed Hummingbird is one of the largest of all North American hummingbirds. This tough species is well adapted to freezing night temperatures—when the night falls, it slows its heart rate and drops its body temperature, hibernating until the morning. Fast and acrobatic like all hummingbirds, it is able to achieve 50 wingbeats per second.

The hairy Woodpecker is small and powerful, with a long bill that it puts to great use. The clean stripes of its head and exceedingly straight posture gives it the look of a soldier in the trees. Its call is more of a “whinny,” that can be heard in forests and parks. This bird is often found with its lookalike counterpart—the Downy woodpecker.

The colorful western Bluebird lives on the edge of coniferous and deciduous forests, usually in hollowed-out trees where there is plenty of room to perch; these birds will become especially territorial over nesting areas but are relaxed otherwise. Interestingly, nesting western Bluebirds have been documented receiving help from other birds of the species, most likely unintentionally.

Woodhouse's scrub jay is a medium-sized bird, approximately 27–31 cm (11–12 in) in length (including its tail), with a 39 cm (15 in) wingspan, and about 80 g (2.8 oz) in weight. Coastal Pacific birds tend to be brighter in coloration than those of the interior, but all are patterned in blue, white, and gray, though none as uniform in color as the related Mexican jay. In general, this species has a blue head, wings, and tail, a gray-brown back, and grayish underparts. The throat is whitish with a blue necklace. The call is described as "harsh and scratchy".

A common visitor of birdhouses or anywhere with birdseed, the lesser Goldfinch is a small, notch-tailed bird that enjoys gardens and open wooded areas. Its size has made it commonly overlooked, but listen out for its charming, chiming song. Social birds, they are often seen in large groups of hundreds traveling together at a time.

The turkey Vulture is a common sight, especially around roads, where they keep a sharp eye out for roadkill. Seeing these large birds in the sky can often make you take a second look to see if it’s an eagle or a hawk. Here’s one quick way to tell the difference. When in flight, a turkey Vulture will circle unsteadily, with its wings lifted to make a V shape. Though they are not appreciated, they do the dirty work of the animal kingdom by cleaning up the countryside as they scavenge.

Black-chinned Hummingbirds are small birds that like to perch on bare branches. During cold snaps, black-chinned Hummingbirds will typically eat three times their body weight in nectar per day. These smart birds build their nests with insect and spider silk, which allows the nests to stretch and expand along with the growing chicks.